


A Glorified Chess Piece

by Emono



Series: Safe and Sound [7]
Category: Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: First touches, Frienship seriously evolving into something awesome here, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-12
Updated: 2013-09-12
Packaged: 2017-12-26 10:04:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/964672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emono/pseuds/Emono
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Carlos wants to see the Shape in Grove Park. He also learns how Cecil gets away with saying all those things on the radio. </p><p>Spoilers for Episode 5.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Glorified Chess Piece

“ _Close your eyes. Let my words wash over you. You are safe now. Welcome to Night Vale._ ”

 

It was becoming a bit of a habit for them to take off on walks together, shoulder to shoulder as their feet mapped the sidewalks of Night Vale.

 

Cecil and Carlos had chosen Mission Grove Park as their venue for the night. Despite the glaringly obvious desert all around them, this scarce stretch of three miles flourished with thick trees and spouted little tufts of color. The wildflowers were harmless unless you smelled them, something one of Carlos's colleagues had found out the hard way.

 

Poor George. He still couldn't see the color orange.

 

The pair hadn't spoken in a few days and they'd been eager to catch up, both hoping to repair the damage of their last meeting. It had been a rough start for Carlos since he still couldn't shake the dream but he'd fallen back into their usual rhythm easily enough. They'd discussed books (“What do you mean you've never read _Lord of the Rings_?”) and movies (“I'm not sure which one is Ryan Gosling but I'm fairly sure he exists on several planes of existence.”). And finally they settled, as usual, on the topic of his hair.

 

“They laid so beautifully,” Cecil lamented, reaching up and brushing his thumb along the end of one of the locks, “And that _Telly_ cut it so close.”

 

He said the barber's name with a hiss.

 

“I'm not a sheep,” Carlos swatted his hand away, “My hair isn't precious.”

 

“But you were starting to have curls, just there at the bottom,” Cecil actually pouted before he sighed, reverence creeping back into his tone, “It's such a lovely shade of black. Like tar pits.”

 

He caught another lock between his fingers, ignoring the man's protests.

 

“Silky,” the blonde breathed out.

 

They passed a taped off construction area. The picnic area, the blood stone circle, and the new swing set were looking good. It would be a fantastic family area.

 

As they continued to walk, the trees began to thin out and the worn path beneath their shoes faded into something paved. Instead of asphalt it was ivory brick, shiny and smooth.

 

“Strange,” Carlos craned his head, eyeing the stones as they kept on, “It looks as if no one's ever walked here. They're much too clean.”

 

They came to a clearing, the trees lining the edge. They had a curiously thick fungus growing on them, blacker than the night itself. Carlos went up to one, taking a glove out of his jacket and snapping it on. He poked and prodded the spongy surface, fuzz almost clinging to his fingertip. He took a small sample and sealed it in a petri dish, tucking it away in one of his hidden pockets for later analyzing. He turned to tell Cecil that he'd never seen growth like that, finding the blonde staring to the middle of the clearing with wide eyes. He followed his line of sight.

 

There was... _something_ there. It was tall and wide, with angles and curves. It had a shadow even at this time of night, the edges of it blurred like they'd been rubbed out with a damp thumb.

 

Carlos started to walk toward it, fishing around in his coat for his miniature flashlight.

 

“What is that?” he inquired, growing more frustrated as he realized he'd left it at home, “Cecil? Have you seen this before? Is this the _Shape_ I've read about in the reports?”

 

Strong hands curled across his waist, long fingers fanning out along his ribs to get a good grip. Carlos shuddered as he was pulled back into his friend's chest, a palm skimming up his own. It brushed his cheek and nose before the cool hand settled across his eyes, blocking out the clearing.

 

“What are you doing?” Carlos protested feebly, resolve crumbling as he realized he could feel the blonde's steady breathing against his back. It calmed the jump his heart had taken at the sight of the Shape. He tried to say something else but smooth lips brushed his ear and his brain short-circuited.

 

“You can't go near it,” Cecil's voice was like spun sugar, “Don't look at it. Don't acknowledge it. Nobody does. It's one of those rules.”

 

“Nobody?” Carlos squirmed in his grip, “So I'd be the first?”

 

Cecil inhaled deeply, catching the scent of the other's breath as he spoke, “You actually chew lavender gum.”

 

He cracked a smile, realizing he wasn't going to get any closer to the Shape, “I do.”

 

Cecil sensed his smile and started to laugh but the breath it took to do it got him another whiff of the man's scent. _Oh_ , dear powers above, Carlos smelled delicious. He tried to pull in the reins on his urges but he couldn't, they were too close and the scientist was so hot in his arms. The blonde ducked his head down and laid a kiss on his jugular, caramel skin searing his lips. He greedily laid a few more, the tip of his tongue getting just a small taste.

 

Amethyst bathed Carlos's shoulder as his eyes shifted, every hair on his body bristling.

 

Carlos tasted like almonds and sunshine, like the desert night and a faraway land. He tasted like the home he'd never known.

 

Terror washed over him. Cecil wanted to pull back but he found himself frozen in place. He'd lost his mind, that was the only explanation. He'd lost all reason and good sense. That damningly alluring scent had trapped him, bewitched him. Cecil started sorting through every word he knew in every language he could remember, trying to form the most perfect of apologies to fix the mess he'd made.

 

Then Carlos gave the softest sigh he'd ever heard, body still loose and pressed against him, “You...you don't have to stop.”

 

Carlos turned around, their eyes met, and the Shape was all but forgotten. Cecil's hand fell to the other's cheek, dark stubble grazing against his palm.

 

“You're cold,” the radio host pointed out idly.

 

“Oh, I almost forgot,” Carlos pulled a scarf out of his pocket, the same one his friend had let him borrow, “I never returned this.”

 

“Keep it,” Cecil took it from his hands, “Allow me.”

 

“Cecil,” unlike last time, his name wasn't a protest as he pulled the soft material around his friend's neck. He hid the tempting flesh from himself, tying the scarf rather snugly at the base of his throat. One more moment of that sweet taste and his fangs would've dropped.

 

Cecil cleared his throat and took a step away, gesturing behind him, “Shall we head back?”

 

“I think so,” the scientist replied, knuckles trying to rub the blush off his cheek.

 

Carlos never mentioned the Shape again, though that was far from their last walk through the woods.

 

*******

 

“ _Hello listeners. In breaking news, the sky. The earth. Life. Existence as an unchanging plain with horizons of birth and death in the faint distance. We have nothing to speak about. There never was. Words are an unnecessary trouble. Expression is time wasting away. Any communication is just a yelp in the darkness. Ladies, gentlemen, listeners, you. I am speaking now but I am saying nothing. I am just making noises, and, as it happens, they are organized in words, and you should not draw meaning from this._ ”

 

*******

 

Not for the first time, Carlos found himself wondering why the Moonlite All-Nite Diner was mint-green on the outside and so astonishingly silver on the inside.

 

Not the least bit put off by the strange lighting, Carlos and Cecil had decided to grab a late dinner there. Their food was best eaten when it was much too late to be proper. They'd snagged a booth and he'd let the radio host order for them, explaining quietly once they were alone that the waitresses unnerved him. They got their orders and proceeded into some very pleasant meal conversation, talking about their day and generally enjoying one another. It was a very sweet scene to anyone watching.

 

And of course they were _always_ watching.

 

Cecil slowly finished off his fries, no longer hungry but not quite full. He'd changed before coming, shedding his radio host persona in favor of a button-up and some jeans that had yet to be worn. It wasn't often he went casual but it felt so very right dressed like he was an sitting across from Carlos. He felt like he didn't have to look his best to keep the man's attention and that was worth more than the curious stares he had been getting from the other patrons.

 

Carlos got to the bottom of his milkshake and frowned, putting his fingers to his temple, “Damn. I dilated my blood vessels.”

 

Cecil laughed behind his hand, “Are you even allowed to do that in public?”

 

Carlos grinned, still massaging the ache deep within his skin, “Brain freeze.”

 

“Ah, I see,” Cecil pushed his glasses up into his hair, rubbing the bridge of his nose, “It's been a long day, hasn't it?”

 

“I'm afraid it has,” Carlos's fingers fiddled with his straw, “I caught your show earlier.”

 

“Did you?” as always, Cecil seemed to perk up, “How was it?”

 

“It was nice. I was inside the lab for most of it so I wasn't mixed up in that affair outside your building,” he continued on reluctantly, “I've been curious about something though.”

 

“What is it?”

 

“Why don't you get in trouble for the things you say on the radio?” he stole a glance at the older man, gauging his reaction.

 

Cecil's smile became strained, “That's hardly after-dinner talk.”

 

“Cecil, I'm serious,” his lips pursed, whitening under the pressure, “You're always so worried about me but you never take any precaution. The things you say, the commotion you stirred about the-”

 

He hesitated for a long breath, “- _thing_ today. Station Management can't be approving.”

 

Cecil wiped the salt and grease from his fingers, folding the napkin up afterward as he thought. He knew this day would come but he'd been hoping to put it off a little longer. They'd grown close the past few months and this was important, the scientist deserved to know just what kind of protection deals were struck in Night Vale.

 

“The Sheriff's Secret Police and the City Council have an agreement with Station Management,” Cecil explained slowly, “I'm more or less immune from normal stipulations and in exchange they don't...oh, I don't know, destroy the town.”

 

Carlos paled at that, “I'm sorry?”

 

“They're more powerful than you could ever imagine,” Cecil's heavy lidded gaze was fixed on the table as he spoke, the rim of his coffee mug touching his lower lip, “They could ruin everything if they were so inclined. The last thing anyone in this town wants is them unhappy.”

 

He took a sip of the caffeine and his demeanor changed over to something more pleased, “Fortunately for everyone, they've decided confining themselves to running the local radio show is much better use of their time. I don't believe they'll grow tired of it anytime soon. They seem to enjoy it.”

 

“And they...what? Protect you?” Carlos inquired.

 

“Mm-hmm,” Cecil sat his mug back down, “They're sort of like my legal guardians.”

 

The scientist was openly gaping now, “Did they raise you?”

 

“In a way,” Cecil waved his hand to dismiss it, “Anyway...they have me under their protection so unless someone wants to have a war on their hands, they leave me alone.”

  
“What about that government agency that's always lurking around?”

 

The radio host gave a snort, “ _Please_. Like _they_ could do anything.”

 

“Well,” Carlos's fingers danced through the condensation on his milkshake glass, desperate to calm his nerves, “You seem to be quite the powerful figure here.”

 

“More like figure piece,” Cecli countered, going back to picking at his fries.

 

“I think you mean figure-head,” Carlos corrected.

 

“No, trust me, darling,” he plucked up a burnt piece, “I'm a glorified chess piece at best.”

 

Carlos leaned in and reached out, damp fingers closing over the other's hand, “Cecil...are you trapped here?”

 

Even with his voice lowered, it was much too loud in the quiet diner. Cecil gave a small sigh and rolled his shoulders, his usual persona almost visibly falling back in place. With his composure back, he managed a smile of sorts.

 

“If I was, I'd like to say that I have the most exotic cage in all of Creation.”  
  


It was supposed to be a joke but it only worried the scientist further.

 

“My friend, if you need help getting out of here, I'd be more than willing,” Carlos squeezed his hand, letting their fingers lace, “We could be gone by tonight.”

 

A clatter rang off the tiles. He looked over to find the waitresses staring at their table with wide, silver eyes. They were all facing them, the wispy hair that escaped their buns and ponytails framing their blank faces. Cecil quickly grabbed his hand with both of his, grip bruisingly tight.

 

“Please don't say that, Carlos,” the radio host was trying to sound pleasant but there was an ugly edge of desperation in his voice, “ _Please_. I'm happy here, I promise you that.”

 

Carlos didn't believe him. Everything about the situation screamed trouble. But the gaze of those waitresses burned him from the inside out. He decided to play along, at least for now.

 

“I...I understand.”

 

The waitresses slowly got back to work, hands stuttering like poorly oiled machines as they bussed tables and took orders once more.

 

“There you go again, throwing yourself into danger's path,” Cecil whispered lowly, “You should watch what you say.”

 

Carlos's shoulders went stiff, offense written into the lines of his face, “You know what? I really should be going.”

 

Cecil backtracked, realizing with eye-widening horror what he'd just said, “I'm not trying to tell you what to do. I'd never say that! I just wish you'd be more careful, that's all!”

 

Carlos laid a few bills on the table, refusing to whisper into anything or get his bill from the sugar holder. He went to get up, the older man reaching for him.

 

“Carlos, I'm sorry. That was more than rude of me.”

 

“Excuse me,” he ducked away politely, leaving the radio host by himself.

 

Cecil crossed his arms on the table before burying his face into them, giving a few childish huffs of frustration. No wonder he'd never fallen in love before Carlos. It just wasn't worth the trouble. Protecting loved ones sucked. Caring about people sucked.

 

He thought of the other's handsome smile and strong jaw, the feeling of his hair between his fingers. The way his forehead wrinkled when he was thinking, the excited tremor of his voice when he solved a puzzling problem after days of research. The way the delicate skin under his eyes stayed dark because he never slept.

 

Cecil sighed, lashes fluttering briefly before his eyes fell shut.

 

It was more than worth it.

* * *

 **Sorry for any spelling mistakes, I didn't really read over it after I got it out. I was too excited about the jump in their relationship (in the right direction, may I add). Hope you guys like it. Leave a review or a kudos if you'd like to see more! I'm totally taking suggestions, by the way.**  

 

 


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